Winter project

[DetMatt1]

I put over 5,000 miles on the convertible over the last two seasons and noticed decreased performance in both the engine and the transmission. In order to get a better idea on what the general condition of the engine is I did a compression test and although the results were very uniform the pressure was on the low side at just over 100 psi on all cylinders. All of the plugs had both carbon build up and were a tad oily which didn't surprise me as a puff of smoke upon start up was not uncommon. I was going to do a leak down test but I decided since it was coming out anyway that I'd just be wasting my time. I figured the trans was definitely in need of a rebuild so I would just pull it all and do a complete under hood resto. So it began.

 

[74 challenger]

My the force be with you.

 

[DetMatt1]

That was yesterday this is today. Another half hour or less and the engine is ready to come out. I put my eyes on the pad for the first time to find that all the mains are already oversized. I have no history on the engine so I have no idea wether it has ever been apart and after today I can say for sure that the timing chain has been replaced with a double roller unit at least 18 years ago or more than about 18 thousand miles ago. The timing set is still in good working order but will be replaced anyway.

 

[rbbruno3]

How long has this beauty been in your family?

 

[challenger6pak]

If you have to replace the crank you can always put a 440 crank or aftermarket crank in it. More cubes and power with a stock block.

 

[DetMatt1]

My dad bought it in '96 and I bought it from him a little over 2 years ago.

 

[rbbruno3]

My dad bought it in '96 and I bought it from him a little over 2 years ago.

Nice , is it the original motor? BB vert with air doesn't get much better than that .

 

[DetMatt1]

Original engine and trans, fender tag but no build sheet.

 

[DetMatt1]

Good news and bad news to report. The bad news is that the engine needs a total rebuild and the good news is very good in that the bottom end has never been apart and it's standard bore with a generous ridge at the top. Still had a rope seal and all the original bearings had to be at the end of there useful life. The front cam bearing even has a ridge along with some material loss on the leading edge. I'll post up some pics later.

 

[DetMatt1]

As I was saying...

 

[mmissile]

That's a great base for your rebuild. I'm sure it'll feel like it came out of hibernation.

 

[DetMatt1]

I agree and I can't wait!

 

[MOPARMITCH]

I put over 5,000 miles on the convertible over the last two seasons and noticed decreased performance in both the engine and the transmission. In order to get a better idea on what the general condition of the engine is I did a compression test and although the results were very uniform the pressure was on the low side at just over 100 psi on all cylinders. All of the plugs had both carbon build up and were a tad oily which didn't surprise me as a puff of smoke upon start up was not uncommon. I was going to do a leak down test but I decided since it was coming out anyway that I'd just be wasting my time. I figured the trans was definitely in need of a rebuild so I would just pull it all and do a complete under hood resto. So it began.

You must be slow on carpentry work Matt !!LOL Anyhow, I'm sure that you were going to need to do that at some time. Doing the same on my 68 GTS 383 over on FABO. Hope it all goes well for you.

 

[DetMatt1]

Thanks Man! I've actually been spread way to thin for the past 6 months and am finally caught up (I think that's what it's called). Anyway I am taking a few days off to tear this project down so I can get the ball rolling on all the machine work and line up my trans guy. I'm back to the client work today.

 

[mmissile]

..any progress?

 

[DetMatt1]

As a matter of fact, a little. I took the engine to my engine guy and just yesterday continued removing parts out of the engine room in preparation for clean and paint. I would like to determine what holes should and shouldn't be there so I can weld them closed and also need to address some panel alignment issues. I know the fenders are too close together because the gaps to the hood are almost nonexistent to the point that the hood alignment wedges were abandoned at some point. This also means that the fronts of the doors are too close to the A pillars and I also know the hinges need some work. Here's a couple of pics from yesterday.
Are the hood springs supposed to be body color?

 

[challenger6pak]

Yes. The hood was up part of the time when the factory painted the car. The hood springs were sprayed body color at the same time.

 

[moparlee]

Good progress Matt. While you are this far, are you going to drop the suspension are replace the bushings? (maybe you already told us that). Then you will have more parts to clean up and paint. Seems like projects always have a tendancy to grow!

 

[challenger6pak]

You got me wanting to get my 71 vert together. Was this ever resprayed under the hood? My dryer bracket is black and my access covers for the control arms are just natural metal.

 

[moparlee]

You got me wanting to get my 71 vert together. Was this ever resprayed under the hood? My dryer bracket is black and my access covers for the control arms are just natural metal.

Looks like it must have been re-sprayed at some point as there is over spray on the shock mounting hardware and brake lines.